Six Sagas of Adventure (38 page)

Hrolf said, “Eighty men are on my ship, and they will come with me. I have enough money to pay our expenses. I would like to have some castle, not far from you, to house my men and defend your lands, if you’re willing.”

The jarl said, “I’m thankful that you came. Everything shall be done as you wish, that your honor may be increased.”

Hrolf thanked the jarl for his words and went to his men. The jarl gave them a castle to hold. Hrolf stayed in the castle quietly and maintained his men well, but most of the time he went on raids and manfully defended the jarl’s realm. Stefnir and Hrolf became firm friends. Bjorn the Counsellor was also dearest to Hrolf. Some time now passed, with nothing of note happening.

CHAPTER VIII

There was a man named Tryggvi, the son of Ulfkell. His family came from Buchan in Scotland. He was the greatest champion and berserk, and he sailed out with a fleet of ships in both summer and winter. He had a sworn brother named Vazi, who was also the worst troll on account of his size and his strength alike. Thorgnyr had killed Tryggvi’s father when he was raiding. Tryggvi had now acquired twelve ships, all well equipped with men and weapons. He sailed with this host to Denmark, wanting to avenge his father on Jarl Thorgnyr. Vazi was with him, and many other champions. As soon as they reached Jarl Thorgnyr’s realm, they invaded it and pillaged farms, killing men and stealing all the livestock they caught. When the jarl heard this news, he had the war-arrow carved and summoned his men. But because he was old, he appointed Hrolf and Stefnir to lead his forces. This was the second winter of Hrolf’s first stay in Denmark.

Hrolf and his forces sailed with ten ships to find Tryggvi. They encountered each other alongside an uninhabited island. They didn’t exchange many greetings. Fighting broke out at once. Tryggvi and Vazi had a great dragon-ship. They were ferocious fighters. It was difficult to carry the fight up into the dragon-ship because of how high its sides were. They dropped stones over the sides of the ship onto Hrolf and his men. Many of Hrolf’s and Stefnir’s men fell, and many were wounded, and the battle was turning against them. Stefnir and Hrolf were wearing the cloaks, Vefreyja’s Gifts, and no weapon hurt them. They steered their ships at the dragon-ship and attacked manfully. Hrolf had the spear Atli’s Gift and a great oaken club under his belt. Stefnir had a good sword in hand, and was the boldest of men.

When the attack was at the height of fury, Hrolf leaped up into the prow. He forced his way before him, stabbing with the spear so powerfully that the men opposing him either fell, or else they were run through. Stefnir leaped up after him, swinging his sword to left and right. They quickly cleared the prow of men. Then each of them moved sternwards along one side of the ship, and everyone fled back towards the sail. By then the day was mostly over.

When Tryggvi and Vazi saw this, they charged right at them. Vazi had a thrusting-spear in his hand, and Tryggvi had an axe. Hrolf went up against Vazi, and each one stabbed at the other. The thrusting-spear stuck in Hrolf’s shield and split it all to pieces, but Hrolf wasn’t wounded. Vazi brought up his shield against Hrolf’s blow, but the spear glanced off the shield and pierced Vazi’s thigh, making a severe wound. Vazi struck at the spear-shaft. Hrolf then seized his club and defended himself with that, smashing Vazi’s entire shield. They fought for a long time, until Hrolf broke the thrusting-spear’s shaft. At that moment, Vazi rushed at Hrolf so that he almost fell. Hrolf threw away the club and turned on him. They wrestled long and hard. Hrolf thought that he’d never had to deal with a stronger man who wasn’t a shape-shifter. In the end, Hrolf carried Vazi out onto the gunwale and broke his back.

Stefnir and Tryggvi had been fighting all this time. Stefnir was worn out by exhaustion and heavy blows, but he wasn’t wounded. Tryggvi was badly wounded. Hrolf hurried over there, and when Tryggvi saw that, he didn’t want to wait around for him and stepped overboard. They couldn’t search for him because of the darkness.

The battle ended, and a truce was granted to every survivor. Six ships were cleared of all their crews. They took much wealth there and headed for home, leaving matters as they stood. The jarl thanked Hrolf very much for his efforts. They didn’t find Tryggvi at the time, and so they parted with him.

CHAPTER IX

It happened one day, as it often happens, that two unknown men walked into the hall. They were tall and bold-looking, but not well fitted out with weapons or clothing. They went before the jarl and greeted him. He accepted their greeting warmly and asked their names.

The larger man said, “We two are brothers. My name is Hrafn, and my brother is Krak, and our family comes from Flanders.”

“It was a bad day for good names,” said the jarl, “for such brave men to be called such things.”
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Hrafn said, “We would like to lodge here over the winter, because we’ve been told that you are good to men who’ve stayed with you for a long time.”

The jarl said that they would be welcome, and arranged for them to sit in the middle of the bench, to the outside of the king’s greatest champion. They stayed there, highly honored by the jarl. They didn’t take part in much good cheer or fun with other men.

There were always ball games going on.
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Many men invited the brothers to come play. They said that they’d always played ball and were considered rough players. The jarl’s men promised to take responsibility for whatever happened.

The next morning, the brothers went to play. They always kept the ball, all day long. They shoved men and knocked them down hard, and struck some. By evening, three men had broken arms, and many were beaten and injured. The jarl’s men thought they had come off badly. This went on for several days.

The jarl’s men decided to ask the jarl’s son Stefnir to go to the games and even their odds a bit, and he agreed. The next morning, Stefnir went to the playing field. As soon as Hrafn saw him, he said, “Are you so strong that you’re not allowed to play with other men,
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or do you think you’re so great that no one will dare to play against you?”

Stefnir said, “I’m neither so strong nor so arrogant that I’m not allowed to play this game.”

Hrafn said, “Then I invite you to play against us brothers three nights from now, with the teammate of your choice, if you dare.”

Stefnir said, “You can be sure that I’ll come to the game.”

He left at once. He took a horse and rode until he came to Hrolf’s castle. This was the second winter of Hrolf’s stay in Denmark. As soon as Hrolf knew that Stefnir had arrived, he went to meet him and welcomed him most cheerfully. Then they sat down to drink.

Stefnir said, “I’ve come here because I’d like to invite you to play on my side, against the men my father has taken in for the winter, known as Krak and Hrafn.”

Hrolf said, “I’ve been told that they have injured many men and killed some, and that they are strong men. And I don’t know how to play games. Still, I’ll go with you, if you want.”

They went to the fort, and the jarl welcomed Hrolf warmly. The next day, Hrolf and Stefnir went to the games. The brothers had also arrived. Hrafn took the ball, and Krak took the stick, and they played as they usually did. The jarl sat on a chair and watched the game. When they had played for a while, Hrolf managed to get the ball. He grabbed the stick away from Krak and gave it to Stefnir. Then they played for a long time, keeping the ball away from the brothers.

On one occasion, as Hrafn was rushing after the ball, someone stuck out his foot so that he fell. It was a young man with a habit of playing pranks on others, a kinsman of the jarl’s. Hrafn became very angry. He jumped up quickly and grabbed the man who’d tripped him and lifted him up and flung him down on his head, breaking his neck. The jarl shouted to his men and ordered them to seize Hrafn and kill him. Hrolf rushed at Hrafn and grabbed him. Krak and Stefnir were fighting elsewhere, and Hrolf forbade anyone to interfere with them. They hadn’t wrestled for long before Hrolf picked Hrafn up against his chest and threw him down, knocking him unconscious for a long time and scraping the skin from his shoulder-blades.

But when Hrafn came to, Hrolf helped him up and said, “I see that you have the look of a man of rank. My lord, I ask you to grant these men a pardon, because I know that they come from noble kin.”

Stefnir had gotten the better of Krak, and asked his father to give Hrolf what he asked for. The jarl was furious for a long time, yet he gave them a pardon, as Hrolf and Stefnir had asked. The brothers were very stiff, and walked off to their quarters without a word. They did not appear at the table that evening.

The men now left off playing and went to drink. Hrolf said to Stefnir, “Now you must take the finest cloth we have and give it to your sister Thora. She must sew clothes for the brothers, and have them ready early in the morning.”

Stefnir did so, and went to Thora with the cloth and told her how she should make the clothes. When Stefnir left, she began to sew the clothes. The night passed, and early in the morning Thora sent the finished clothes to Hrolf. He took them and went to the brothers’ lodgings and saw that they were lying down. Hrolf said, “Why is the raven so late in flying, since there’s plenty of carrion, and eagles and other scavengers are full now?”

Hrafn said, “They can hardly fly if they’ve been plucked, or if they’re molting.”

Hrolf took the clothes and tossed them at them and left at once. The brothers put on the clothes and went into the hall and sat at the table.

The winter passed. It’s not said that Krak and Hrafn thanked Hrolf for the clothes, or for saving their lives, although they were well treated. Towards the start of summer they left, so that no one knew what became of them. Many felt that they’d acted strangely.

Hrolf and Stefnir both went on raids through the summer, winning plenty of wealth and fame. They came home in the autumn, safe and sound, but there’s nothing to tell about their mighty deeds.

CHAPTER X

The next summer, Hrolf stayed with Jarl Thorgnyr and was honored highly. One day in the autumn, as Jarl Thorgnyr was sitting on his queen’s burial mound and games were being played before him, a swallow flew over him and dropped a silken handkerchief down into his lap and flew away.
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The jarl took it and untied it, and saw a human hair inside, as long as a tall man and the color of gold.

That evening, the jarl sat down at the feasting table. He showed his men the hair which the swallow had let fall. Most of them thought that it must be a woman’s hair. The jarl said, “This oath I swear: to win that woman whose hair this is—if I can find out which estates to search, or what land she is in—or else die.”

Everyone felt that this was a mighty oath, and the men looked at each other.
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Some nights later, the jarl summoned an assembly of many men. He stood up in the assembly and informed the men of the oath he had sworn, and asked whether anyone could recognize this woman, or knew where she would have to be searched for. The hair was also shown, to see if anyone could recognize it.

Bjorn the Counsellor said, “Gladly will I speak and act, my lord, that it may bring honor and glory to you and your kingdom, rather than any sort of harm or discredit. I judge your sworn oath to be a weighty matter. I think that this woman is not fated to be yours, but I can nearly guess at who she is, though I have never inquired about her before. There was a king named Hreggvid, ruling over Russia. He had a daughter named Ingibjorg, fairest and finest in all respects. I have heard that it’s true that no woman in the Northlands has ever excelled her, nor has had longer and fairer hair than she. My suspicion is that the hair must be hers, whatever the device by which it came to us. Now you all must have heard the truth about what happened to the princess when King Hreggvid fell before King Eirek. She must have a man to joust against the king’s champion Sorkvir and thus rescue her. I think that few would be eager to contend with such a man. Even if someone were to unhorse Sorkvir, I don’t think that the princess would be any easier to get out of Russia than before.”

Everyone there thought that it must be as Bjorn had said.

CHAPTER XI

After Bjorn had given his advice, Jarl Thorgnyr was silent for some time. Then he said, “To the man who will go to Russia and joust against Sorkvir and win the hand of this maiden for me, I shall give Thora my daughter, and a third of all my kingdom. I will withhold neither ships nor men for the journey, for the man who is willing.”

All the men fell silent at this proposal. No one answered the jarl, until Hrolf stood up and spoke: “This is a paltry thing, failing to answer a ruler such as we have. My lord, because I have been with you for some time, highly honored and receiving many boons from you, I will go on this journey and try to get the princess, or else lie dead. But even if I return from this journey, you should give your daughter to whomever you want, because she’s well worthy of a good match, but getting married is not to my taste.”

The jarl thanked Hrolf very much, and asked him to take as many men as he wanted. But Hrolf said that he didn’t want anyone, “because one man arouses less suspicion than a crowd, wherever they go.”

Stefnir asked to go with him, but Hrolf didn’t want him to. Now the assembly broke up. Hrolf returned to his castle, and everyone went back to his own home.

CHAPTER XII

Shortly afterwards, Hrolf left the castle without anyone finding out, and his men stayed behind. He wore the cloak Vefreyja’s Gift, and traveled with the spear Atli’s Gift. He had a bow and a quiver of arrows on his shoulders. Nothing is said about what road Hrolf took, but one day, once he had gone most of the way through Denmark, he saw a man coming. He was very tall, and fully armored down to his hands and feet. He came towards Hrolf with a drawn sword in hand. Hrolf greeted this man and asked him his name. He said, “I am called Vilhjalm, and my ancestry I don’t care to recite for you. You are to choose one of two options. One is to tell me who you are and where you wish to go and what your errand is. The other is for me to kill you, and then you’ll travel no farther.”

Hrolf said, “There’s no need for you to give me a hard choice, because my chances are no worse than yours, however we test each other.”

Vilhjalm struck at Hrolf with the sword, but Hrolf blocked it with the spear and it didn’t cut. Hrolf threw away the spear and rushed at Vilhjalm, who turned to face him, and their wrestling lasted a long time before Vilhjalm fell.

Hrolf said, “Now the advantage is all mine. You’ll have to tell me what your errand is and where you’re from.”

Vilhjalm said, “I come from here in Denmark. I’m the son of a farmer, but I wanted to go to Russia and break into the mound of King Hreggvid and take his weapons and thus win the hand of King Eirek’s sister Gyda. Now I want to become your servant. I’m gifted at may things, because I’m both smart and well-spoken. It’d be best for you to let me live. I’ll faithfully serve you. You’ll benefit from me.”